By Will Feuer
Shares of Red Robin Gourmet Burgers fell after Chief Financial Officer Todd Wilson warned that the company is seeing signs of a traffic slowdown across the industry.
The stock slipped 8% to $9.17 in afternoon trading. So far this year, shares are up 65% as G.J. Hart, who took over as the company’s chief executive officer about a year ago, works to revamp the brand.
Red Robin executives are seeing signs of a third-quarter pullback in consumer traffic across the casual-dining industry, Wilson said Monday at an industry conference hosted by CL King & Associates.
“Is that part of the normal ups and downs of our industry or is that maybe a broader trend? Only time will tell, but I think it certainly has our attention,” he said.
So far, though, Red Robin’s customers have largely kept spending, he said. Demand for add-on items like desserts, appetizers and alcoholic drinks has held strong. However, off-premise customers and especially those ordering through third-party delivery channels are showing signs of closely managing their check size.
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